Christ Loves Us Passionately & Personally

 “Set me as a seal upon thine heart, As a seal upon thine arm: For love is strong as death; Jealousy is cruel as the grave: The coals thereof are coals of fire, Which hath a most vehement flame.”

‭‭Song of Solomon‬ ‭8‬:‭6‬ ‭KJV‬

Solomon’s song says, “Fasten me upon your heart as a seal of fire forevermore. This living, consuming flame will seal you as my prisoner of love. My passion is stronger than the chains of death and the grave, all consuming as the very flashes of fire from the burning heart of God. Place this fierce, unrelenting fire over your entire being.”  Sealing us in His heart, is Christ making us His love prisoner in the cell of His eternal love.  Christ’s passion is a most vehement flame, a mighty flash of fire - it is the Mighty Flame of the Lord Most Passionate.  We must accept that Christ proved God’s passionate love for us by dying in our place while we were still lost and ungodly!  Let’s receive this love for it is Christ’s love that fuels our passion and holds us tightly, because we are convinced that He has given His life for all of us. This means all died with Him.  That’s why we are sealed in His heart and forever prisoners of His eternal love.  Let’s believe and receive His love personally.  Amen!

Love Caused the Disciple to Witness Christ’s Crucifixion

 “When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!”

‭‭John‬ ‭19‬:‭26‬ ‭KJV‬‬

John, the beloved disciple recorded, “So when Jesus looked down and saw the disciple He loved standing with her, He said, “Mother, look—John will be a son to you.”  Although unnamed, this was most certainly John the apostle.  John, the apostle of love, was the only one of the Twelve, who stood near the Cross and witnessed the crucifixion.  Love doesn’t quit or run away, or hide from pain.  It endures all things, overcomes all things, and empowers us in all things.  John didn’t run from the suffering of the Saviour.  We must be those who will stand next to Jesus even if the entire world is against us. Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance and love will last forever! Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.  Let’s receive this love that the Holy Spirit has shed abroad in our hearts and flow with God’s love, to love our Saviour and to love others with God’s love.  Amen!

Bearers of Good News

 “How beautiful are thy feet with shoes, O prince's daughter! The joints of thy thighs are like jewels, The work of the hands of a cunning workman.”

‭‭Song of Solomon‬ ‭7‬:‭1‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Solomon’s song says, “How beautiful on the mountains are the sandaled feet of this one bringing such good news. You are truly royalty! The way you walk so gracefully in my ways displays such dignity. You are truly the poetry of God—His very handiwork.”  All those who bring the good news of salvation in Christ are the true royalty, filled with grace and truth which comes from Jesus, with the Spirit of sonship received by faith.  Everyone in the Body of Christ who bring the Gospel to hungry hearts, are apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers and they bring with beautiful feet, the words of life.  As the prophet said, “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”  Christ is reigning in our hearts and may we seek His Kingdom and His righteousness whilst on earth.  Amen!

The Victorious One, the Heir of a Powerful Family

 “They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he. And Judas also, which betrayed him, stood with them. As soon then as he had said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground.”

‭‭John‬ ‭18‬:‭5‬-‭6‬ ‭KJV‬‬

John the beloved disciple recorded, “Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. (Now Judas, the traitor, was among them.) He replied, “I Am He.” And the moment Jesus spoke the words, “I Am He”, the mob fell backward to the ground!”  Jesus, the Nazarene and this came from “nussraya” which in Aramaic means “victorious one” or “heir of a powerful family” and Nazareth in Hebrew which means “branch”.  This truly was a powerful moment as the great I Am spoke His Name before those who sought to seize Him.  When He spoke these soldiers didn’t trip over each other in surprise but these strong men fell backward to the ground by the power of God.  Jesus was in charge that night as the Captain of the Host of the Lord.  They could not seize Him unless He permitted them to do so.  What a wonderful Saviour, Who willingly submitted to the hands of cruel men, to bring us the gift of salvation.  In that day the Branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious!  Amen!

Our Sincere Devotion to Christ Helps Us Overcome

 “Turn away thine eyes from me, For they have overcome me: Thy hair is as a flock of goats That appear from Gilead.”

‭‭Song of Solomon‬ ‭6‬:‭5‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Solomon’s song says, “Turn your eyes from me; I can’t take it anymore! I can’t resist the passion of these eyes that I adore. Overpowered by a glance, my ravished heart—undone. Held captive by your love, I am truly overcome! For your undying devotion to me is the most yielded sacrifice.”  The Hebrew word for “overcome” is Rahab.  Like the harlot, who was chosen, favoured, saved from Jericho’s destruction, and included in the genealogy of Jesus, so we have “overcome” His heart.  No one would have thought Rahab would be so honoured - and many say that about us today.  We have overcome many things but to overcome His heart is love’s delight for we overcome by the Blood of the Lamb and by the Word of our testimony.  Hair in Scripture is a picture of our devotion to Christ like Mary.  It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. Let’s obey with fear and trembling and with sincere devotion to Christ, and enjoy Him delighting in us.  Amen!

The Fullness of Christ in Believers is Imperative

 “I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.”

‭‭John‬ ‭17‬:‭9‬ ‭KJV‬‬

John the beloved disciple records, “So with deep love, I pray for My disciples. I’m not asking on behalf of the unbelieving world, but for those who belong to You, those You have given Me.”  How could it be that Jesus loves the world and gave Himself for the sin of the world, yet emphasises that He is praying for His disciples and not praying for the world?  Jesus’ coming into the world brings life to those who believe and judgment to those who do not.  The implication is that the key to reaching the world is the life, maturity, unity and love of the disciples.  This does not mean that Jesus doesn’t love the world, but that the world will only be reached when the disciples come into the fullness of Christ and in unity of the faith.  This is what consumes the heart of Jesus as He prays for them, before He went to the Cross.  The glory of God is revealed through the surrendered lives of all God’s disciples even today!  Amen!

Put On the Garment of Righteousness

 “I sleep, but my heart waketh: It is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, My dove, my undefiled: For my head is filled with dew, And my locks with the drops of the night. I have put off my coat; How shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; How shall I defile them?”

‭‭Song of Solomon‬ ‭5‬:‭2‬-‭3‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Solomon’s song says, “After this I let my devotion slumber, but my heart for him stayed awake. I had a dream. I dreamed of my beloved— he was coming to me in the darkness of night. The melody of the man I love awakened me. I heard his knock at my heart’s door as he pleaded with me: I have already laid aside my own garments for you. How could I take them up again since I’ve yielded my righteousness to yours? You have cleansed my life and taken me so far. Isn’t that enough?”  In Hebrew this means “My head is filled with dew and my hair with the drops of the night.”  This is the picture of Jesus as the Gethsemane Man, the One Who prayed all night for us.  Garments are used as a picture of righteousness.  Filthy garments are a symbol of unrighteousness or self-righteousness.  Clean white garments are a picture of the righteousness of Christ.  The Shulamite laying aside her coat or garments is symbolic of what happens when we come to know Jesus as Saviour - we lay aside our self-righteousness and take up His garments of true righteousness.  That’s why many who are so filled with self-righteousness are weak in declaring with confidence the true Gospel of righteousness that we have which comes from knowing Christ, the power of His  resurrection, and the participation in His sufferings. It includes being conformed to His  death.  Let’s nail to the Cross every self-righteousness in us prophesy “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”  Amen!

Passed from Judgment & Embraced Christ’s Righteousness

 “And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they believe not on me; of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.”

‭‭John‬ ‭16‬:‭8‬-‭11‬ ‭KJV‬‬

John the beloved disciple recorded Jesus’s words, “And when He comes, He will expose sin and prove that the world is wrong about God’s righteousness and His judgments. ‘Sin,’ because they refuse to believe in Who I Am.  God’s ‘righteousness,’ because I Am going back to join the Father and you’ll see Me no longer. And ‘judgment’ because the ruler of this dark world has already received his sentence.”  Sin, righteousness and judgment are related to three.  Sin is related to Adam for it was through Adam sin entered humanity.  “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—”. Righteousness is related to Christ because it comes through Him and He has become our righteousness.  Judgment is related to satan, for the pure works of Christ bring judgment to the works of satan.  If we do not embrace Christ’s righteousness, we will share satan’s judgment.  For God made the only One Who  did not know sin to become sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God through our union with Him.  We are so blessed to have passed from judgment because we have embraced the righteousness of God in Christ.  Amen!

The Resurrected Christ Reflected in the Sacred Spices & Fruit

 “Thy plants are an orchard of pomegranates, With pleasant fruits; Camphire, with spikenard, Spikenard and saffron; Calamus and cinnamon, With all trees of frankincense; Myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices:”

‭‭Song of Solomon‬ ‭4‬:‭13‬-‭14‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Solomon’s song says, “Your inward life is now sprouting, bringing forth fruit.  What a beautiful paradise unfolds within you.  When I’m near you, I smell aromas of the finest spice, for many clusters of my exquisite fruit now grow within your inner garden. Here are the nine: pomegranates of passion, henna from heaven, spikenard so sweet, saffron shining, fragrant calamus from the cross, sacred cinnamon, branches of scented woods, myrrh, like tears from a tree, and aloe as eagles ascending.”  Every fruit and spice reflects the resurrected Christ.  Pomegranate is taken from a word that means “exalted”.  Solomon’s temple had pillars adorned with pomegranates.  Henna’s root word is “ransom price” or “redemption” - this fruit of mercy is seen in Christ’s maturing Bride.  Spikenard’s root word is “light” and Christ’s Bride is walking in the Light as He is the Light.  Saffron is the crocus, the lover’s perfume, costly and fragrant.  Calamus is a marsh plant known as “sweet flag” which produces fragrant oil and its root word is “purchased” or “redeemed”. Cinnamon emits a fragrance that is holiness to the Lord and was used in the sacred anointing oil of the priests and the tabernacle, an incense burned on the golden altar of the Holy Place.  Myrrh is a resin spice formed by cutting a tree, known as “tears from a tree” - it is a picture of the suffering love of Christ dripping down from Calvary’s tree.  Aloe is considered a healing balm - the Presence of the Lord in the Bride is released as a healing balm.  Jesus’s robes smelled of aloes.  Another name for aloes is “eagle wood” and like eagles we fly above our wounds, free from the past as we walk in intimacy with Him.  Amen! ‎

Chosen by Our God for Such a Time as This

 “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his Lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.that”

‭‭John‬ ‭15‬:‭14‬-‭16‬ ‭KJV‬‬

As John the beloved disciple recorded, “You show that you are My intimate friends when you obey all that I command you. I have never called you ‘servants,’ because a master doesn’t confide in his servants, and servants don’t always understand what the master is doing. But I call you My most intimate and cherished friends, for I reveal to you everything that I’ve heard from my Father. You didn’t choose Me, but I’ve chosen and commissioned you to go into the world to bear fruit. And your fruit will last, because whatever you ask of My Father, for My sake, He will give it to you!”  When our obedience to our Lord Jesus becomes a habit, we will find intimacy in our personal relationship with Him.  No longer will we be guilty or ashamed, feeling condemned like a slave, but our emotions will be able to accept that we are chosen and beloved of God.  Actually, the Lord has cared for us from our mother’s womb.  We are more than a friend to Him for we are born again from His wounded side.  We grow into maturity and character, going into our calling and ministry, according to the will of the Father.  Amen!